2018 Paradise Jam (Virgin Islands)

[Sluconn Husky]

UConn will be part of an 8-team field that will play November 22-24.

The teams are UConn, North Carolina, Purdue, South Florida, St. John's, UCLA, Ole Miss, and Kentucky.


U.S. Virgin Islands Paradise Jam

 

[meyers7]

UConn will be part of an 8-team field that will play November 22-24.

The teams are UConn, North Carolina, Purdue, South Florida, St. John's, UCLA, Ole Miss, and Kentucky.


U.S. Virgin Islands Paradise Jam

Not too bad. Better line-up than I've seen at some other tourneys.

 

[SCGamecock]

UConn will be part of an 8-team field that will play November 22-24.

The teams are UConn, North Carolina, Purdue, South Florida, St. John's, UCLA, Ole Miss, and Kentucky.


U.S. Virgin Islands Paradise Jam

That's a fun group.

 

[bags27]

There goes the kids' Thanksgiving . Not too shabby.

 

[nwhoopfan]

The teams are UConn, North Carolina, Purdue, South Florida, St. John's, UCLA, Ole Miss, and Kentucky.

2 AAC and 2 SEC schools. That's really unusual for an early season tournament. Conference foes don't typically want to face each other in OOC games.

 

[CocoHusky]

What is the format of this tournament? I'm asking because one of the teams South Florida is in our conference and I believe UCLA was coming east to play UCONN anyway.
Can the tournament be formatted for UCONN to avoid those two teams?

 

[nwhoopfan]

It can be formatted to increase the likelihood that certain teams won't meet, but it can't be guaranteed. Assuming UConn wins all of it's game and either UCLA or South Florida wins their first 2, they would meet UConn in the final.

 

[ucbart]

I think the Paradise Jam has two different divisions...and I don’t believe they pay each other.

 

[Golden Husky]

UConn will be part of an 8-team field that will play November 22-24.

The teams are UConn, North Carolina, Purdue, South Florida, St. John's, UCLA, Ole Miss, and Kentucky.


U.S. Virgin Islands Paradise Jam

Nice reward for the UConn beat writers...if their news outlets pay the travel tab.

 

[nwhoopfan]

I think the Paradise Jam has two different divisions...and I don’t believe they pay each other.

Looking at old brackets, you are correct. The men's tournament is run as a standard 8 team bracket, but the women have two separate brackets w/ 4 teams each and they play a round robin format.

 

[Sluconn Husky]

Purdue will probably be the best team there. They have top-25 talent but are quite young. UCLA will still have talent but they lose a lot.

 

[Carnac]

UConn will be part of an 8-team field that will play November 22-24.

The teams are UConn, North Carolina, Purdue, South Florida, St. John's, UCLA, Ole Miss, and Kentucky.


U.S. Virgin Islands Paradise Jam

And as usual, I'll bet there will be no shortage of "UConn fans" there that will make their presence felt. I sure would like to be one of them. That's going to be a nice 3 day tournament.

 

[oldude]

I’ve been to the USVI & BVI on a number of occasions. One of my very favorite places to swim with the sea turtles and drink rum. My concern is that it takes a very long time to build or rebuild anything in the VI. I have to wonder what kind of shape St Thomas will be in after the hurricane devastation from Irma & Maria.

 

[j66kicker]

I’ve been to the USVI & BVI on a number of occasions. One of my very favorite places to swim with the sea turtles and drink rum. My concern is that it takes a very long time to build or rebuild anything in the VI. I have to wonder what kind of shape St Thomas will be in after the hurricane devastation from Irma & Maria.

I have been checking with the resort we stayed at once when we attended the Paradise Jam. Just reading between the lines, it doesn’t sound good. Lots of, “We hope to be ready,” etc. Once they said they thought they’d be in good shape by Thanksgiving except for the beach bar. I asked if their on-site diving operation was looking like they’d be up and running, and they gave me an e-mail address and told me to contact them directly - didn’t sound like they’d even been in touch. Must have been very devastating storms.

 

[sarals24]

Purdue will probably be the best team there. They have top-25 talent but are quite young. UCLA will still have talent but they lose a lot.

I think UConn might have something to say about that...

 

[oldude]

I have been checking with the resort we stayed at once when we attended the Paradise Jam. Just reading between the lines, it doesn’t sound good. Lots of, “We hope to be ready,” etc. Once they said they thought they’d be in good shape by Thanksgiving except for the beach bar. I asked if their on-site diving operation was looking like they’d be up and running, and they gave me an e-mail address and told me to contact them directly - didn’t sound like they’d even been in touch. Must have been very devastating storms.

In December the USVI Governor was talking about a 4-5 year plan for full recovery.

 

[Bascomfan]

I live in St. Croix which is not far from St. Thomas, so I might fly over. Please support the Virgin I slands. We were hit by 2 Cat5 hurricanes. NBC news talks all the time about Maria stricken Puerto Rico but only sometimes has mentioned us. Rarely mentioned my island. We exist also and we are also U.S. citizens.

 

[MilfordHusky]

UConn will be part of an 8-team field that will play November 22-24.

The teams are UConn, North Carolina, Purdue, South Florida, St. John's, UCLA, Ole Miss, and Kentucky.


U.S. Virgin Islands Paradise Jam

Those dates are Thursday, Friday, and Saturday. It's very tempting.

 

[oldude]

I live in St. Croix which is not far from St. Thomas, so I might fly over. Please support the Virgin I slands. We were hit by 2 Cat5 hurricanes. NBC news talks all the time about Maria stricken Puerto Rico but only sometimes has mentioned us. Rarely mentioned my island. We exist also and we are also U.S. citizens.

It’s wonderful to know there are Husky fans in the USVI. My wife and I love spending time there. We were heartbroken to see the devastation wrought by Hurricanes Irma & Maria, and hope you and all the residents of the USVI see better days ahead.

 

[FairView]

Too early to get flight prices.

 

[Carnac]

I live in St. Croix which is not far from St. Thomas, so I might fly over. Please support the Virgin I slands. We were hit by 2 Cat5 hurricanes. NBC news talks all the time about Maria stricken Puerto Rico but only sometimes has mentioned us. Rarely mentioned my island. We exist also and we are also U.S. citizens.

Edited - 1/31/18 7:32 pst
Bascomfan, If possible, would you be kind enough to perhaps give us (the Boneyard) and update in late October on the recovery efforts of St. Croix and the area around the venue in St. Thomas? I know there will be some UConn faithful that will want to make that trip, if possible. It would be nice to get a progress report about 30 days out, to ascertain if the area (infrastructure) has recovered adequately/sufficiently enough to accommodate visitors, so that possible travel plans could be made. Perhaps you could include several pictures of the venue and the surrounding area if you can. A picture is worth a thousand words. Thanks.

 

[Bascomfan]

Edited - 1/31/18 7:32 pst
Bascomfan, If possible, would you be kind enough to perhaps give us (the Boneyard) and update in late October on the recovery efforts of St. Croix and the area around the venue in St. Thomas? I know there will be some UConn faithful that will want to make that trip, if possible. It would be nice to get a progress report about 30 days out, to ascertain if the area (infrastructure) has recovered adequately/sufficiently enough to accommodate visitors, so that possible travel plans could be made. Perhaps you could include several pictures of the venue and the surrounding area if you can. A picture is worth a thousand words. Thanks.

Yes. I can tell you this. By November if no disaster strike us again, we will be in excellent shape. We've had hundreds of linemen from New York and Florida restoring power over here. Just this week we had a cruise ship visiting St. Croix. We still have some blue roofs but not alot. Since we have elections this year the politicians have moved swiftly to better things though some schools are in a mess. I want to acknowledge our Tim Duncan who has helped the islands by providing food to the residents. But yes the V. I. Will be ready come tourney time so feel safe to fly over here please. If I do cross over to St. Thomas hopefully I will meet some boneyarders.

 

[BlueDolphin]

My wife & I would like to go down, probably for the whole week. I have a bunch of AA miles so I will probably use some of them but I have to act soon.

Any hotel recommendations? Will there be a block of rooms set aside for the tournament ? How do I access them? Or should I book right away?

What about tickets? Will there be a block available through UConn?

What about getting around the island? I will probably want to rent a car. Will I be able to park near the arena.

Any advice from seasoned hands will be much appreciated.

 

[oldude]

My wife & I would like to go down, probably for the whole week. I have a bunch of AA miles so I will probably use some of them but I have to act soon.

Any hotel recommendations? Will there be a block of rooms set aside for the tournament ? How do I access them? Or should I book right away?

What about tickets? Will there be a block available through UConn?

What about getting around the island? I will probably want to rent a car. Will I be able to park near the arena.

Any advice from seasoned hands will be much appreciated.

Most of the hotels in St Thomas are undergoing various levels of repair following the two CAT5 hurricanes that hit last fall. You're really going to need to do your research and follow up directly with the hotels to insure that they will be able to accommodate guests next Thanksgiving. As I've stated previously on this thread, the Governor of the USVI is estimating a 4-5 year recovery from the storms.

 

[j66kicker]

My wife & I would like to go down, probably for the whole week. I have a bunch of AA miles so I will probably use some of them but I have to act soon.

Any hotel recommendations? Will there be a block of rooms set aside for the tournament ? How do I access them? Or should I book right away?

What about tickets? Will there be a block available through UConn?

What about getting around the island? I will probably want to rent a car. Will I be able to park near the arena.

Any advice from seasoned hands will be much appreciated.

Hotels - Marriott at Frenchman’s Cove (? I think) is nicest accommodations, likely the team hotel. Balongo Bay Beach Resort is more “beachy.”

Cars - You do know they drive on the left. Not only do they have British-style roundabouts (difficult enough without everything being bass-ackward), but most roads are narrow, winding, hilly & bumpy with lots of blind curves. Driving is great if you like amusement park rides. Most accommodations are a good drive from the venue.

Tickets/Games - It won’t be sold out. Go to Paradise Jam website for tix. High school type gym, very intimate and informal. Games generally at night (~7:00-10:00 PM), so you can be a tourist all day.

Packages - I believe there will be a UConn-oriented ticket/hotel/local transportation package available. Check UConn site. Pricey, but so is doing it on your own.